High Stakes
by MissGlycerine
Summary: HIATUS---Roy and Ed make a bet. Will Ed's temper get the better of him? Or will Roy wind up in the seat of humiliation? Rated M because eventually it WILL get that way. Don't like, don't read.
1. High Stakes

A/N: I was so nervous while writing this. I hope that everyone likes it. This is my first fic, so please leave me a lot of reviews so that I can improve.

Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Alchemist or any of it's characters. Come on, do you think I'm that lucky?

High Stakes

by

MissGlycerine

It was a mild day in Central. The slight breeze in the air made the weather seem refreshing, compared to the warmer weeks before. And inside the Central Headquarters, the work rate that was usually fast paced was shockingly leisurely. Tranquility filled the atmosphere, and all was good with the world. Until...

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A SHRIMP SO SMALL THAT YOU'D NEED A MICROSCOPE TO SEE IT?!?" shrieked Edward.

Immediately, Alphonse grabbed his older brother from behind to prevent the poor soldier's eminent demise. "Brother! He never said any of those things!" he reasoned, a failing attempt to calm down the raging alchemist.

Finally, Al was able to drag Edward away from the cowering man. Edward was still steaming when they stopped just outside Colonel Mustang's office door. "Hmph!" Ed grunted, huffily. "You shouldn't have stopped me, Al! That guy deserved what he had coming!"

"Brother, I don't think mauling him would have improved your attitude any," Al sighed.

Edward ignored the remark and continued to grumble, absentmindedly kicking the wall outside the door. "Stupid low ranked toady, calling me SHORT! As if it wasn't enough that I have to report to that sarcastic waste of flesh, Mustang!"

"That 'sarcastic waste of flesh' is still _waiting_ for your report, Fullmetal," a familiar voice said from behind them.

Edward and Alphonse whirled around, Ed's face red with embarrassment and anger. Colonel Roy Mustang was leaned against the threshold of his office door, arms crossed, finger tapping impatiently against his elbow. Without saying another word, the superior officer turned his back on the two, and strode back into the room. Edward agitatedly followed, leaving Al to wait in the hallway.

Sitting back in his chair, Roy stared at the youth before him for a few moments. A few moments more. And more. "What's up with you?" Edward blurted with annoyance. "Did you go senile and forget what you wanted to lecture me about this time?"

Roy smirked. Like a starving fish, the younger alchemist took the bait. "No need to be _short _tempered, Edward," Roy scoffed.

Not a second after the word "short" left his mouth, Edward was already spouting death threats and profanities. A moment later, he ran out of breath. Before he could start up again, Roy cut in. "You have a problem, Fullmetal. A problem that could get you into trouble someday."

"Problem? What problem? The only _problem_ I have is with you!"

Another snide grin emerged on the colonel's face. "Every time I refer to you as short, or small, you erupt."

"Yea, what's it to you?" Ed hissed.

"You're a risk taker, Edward. Why don't you and I make a bet?"

Edward's eyes shone with a competitive gleam. "A bet, you say?" he chimed. "Do tell!"

Roy continued, "Here are the conditions. You must restrain yourself from going berserk when you're called short for an entire day in my presence. Meaning starting at midnight you must restrain yourself for a full twenty-four hours from then. You can't even comment to it or correct it. Do you think you can do that, Edward?"

"Piece of cake!" Edward bragged, balling his hands and placing them on his hips. "I could do that, no problem!"

"Then all that's left are the stakes," Roy inquired. "What are the conditions if you win?"

The younger man sat down on one of the couches and thought for a moment. What could possibly be so humiliating that he would get satisfaction and Mustang would be emotionally scarred for life?

"I've got it!" Ed snapped his fingers. "If I win, then you have to spend an entire day in the same room with Maes Hughes and look at every picture he shows you, and listen to every story relating to Elicia he has stored in his black hole of a brain! AND you have to walk around in womens' clothing for three hours in public, shaved legs and all!"

Roy nodded in agreement. "That's quite a lot riding on one bet, don't you think?" he asked.

"Those are my terms!" Ed confirmed. "Now let's hear yours!"

"If I win," the colonel reclined, his arms behind his head. "you have to do whatever I say for a whole week, starting the day the bet ends. You must execute every order I give you with an eye for detail. No slacking. No exceptions. No excuses. Every order must be obeyed." An evil smile graced his features, and he added, "No one but the two of us will know about this. So if you lose and you try to back out of our agreement, don't forget that I have a secret to hold over your head. Not that holding _anything _over your head would be that difficult..."

"WHAT?!?"

"Ah! Practice makes perfect, Ed," Roy teased the fuming boy. "If you keep this up, you won't be able to win the bet at all. At midnight tonight, the challenge begins."

With a look of satisfaction, Edward rose to his feet and held his right hand out over the desk, "Agreed!"

Roy shook his hand, and watched as the other walked out of the room.

"Like puddy in my hands," he mused.

**クフフ。**

"So, how did it go?" Al asked his older brother as he emerged from the room.

Edward's triumphant expression melted from his face. In all the hype of the bet, he had forgotten to fill the colonel in on his recent escapade. Regaining his composure, the alchemist shrugged and began to walk away, Alphonse in tow. "It went," the blond sighed. "Same old story, you know. This time, though, I have to spend a day with Colonel Mustang tomorrow, Al. Top secret assignment. And of course, it's one that needs my special touch to be completed!"

Al was shocked. Not only was his brother in a better mood after a meeting with Colonel Roy Mustang, one of the most annoying people in the world to him, but he was going to spend the a whole day with said annoyance. "Top secret," Al started. "Then that means that I can't come?"

Ed glanced back at his brother and smiled apologetically. "Sorry, Al. You'll have to sit this one out."

**クフフ。**

As soon as the sun was up, so was Edward Elric. He stretched. Took a shower. And then he stared himself down in the mirror. "You can do this," he coached himself. "You just have to survive a full day of Mustang calling you short!"

Ed gave himself a thumbs-up, and after dressing, he made his way to Colonel Mustang's office. When he arrived, he heaved a heavy sigh and knocked boldly upon the door. "Come in," Roy's voice called through the door.

Edward entered the room slowly, glancing at Roy once, then taking his seat on the couch. "Glad to see you could make it, shorty," the colonel comment as he sifted through his paperwork.

The blond gritted his teeth and swallowed hard. "Yea well, you know me! True to my word!"

This was going to be a long day for Edward Elric. But he had already decided that suffering insults from Roy Mustang for a full day would be well worth it in order to see him humiliated.

Nearly three hours later, 2nd Lt. Riza Hawkeye came in with two cups of coffee. "Your coffee, sir," she said, placing Roy's cup on the desk. "Edward, would you like some coffee?"

Just as Ed opened his mouth to accept the offer, Roy butt in, "He can't have any coffee. If he drinks it, his growth will be stunted. Oh! Wait! He's already as tall as he's ever going to get."

Ed was furious inside. He wanted so badly to leap over the desk and pummel Roy where he sat. He stared at the older alchemist, hoping his inner hatred would somehow burn the smirk off his face. Repressing his anger, Ed turned to Hawkeye and gave a huge fake smile, "I'll have a cup!"

The confused Lieutenant handed the cup to Ed and turned to ask Roy, "Sir, have the new uniforms arrived yet?"

Sipping his coffee, Roy looked up. "No, the delivery service called earlier. They're going to arrive late."

With that, Hawkeye saluted and left the room, leaving a steamed Edward and a stoic Roy alone.

-

Edward was on the edge of his seat. After a whole day of suffering, he was about to win the bet! He watched the clock on the wall tick away, three minutes until midnight. He just couldn't sit and wait. Ed stood and began to pace.

"You know, if you keep that up, you'll wear a hole in the floor and it won't be long before I can't see you," Roy snickered, propping his arm on his desk.

Ed ignored the comment and continued to pace. There came a knock at the door. "Will you answer that, shorty?"

Letting the "shorty" part go in one ear and out the other, Edward opened the door. What appeared to be a stack of boxes with legs entered the room, knocking into him as it did. "Oh shoot!" was heard, and the boxes tumbled on top of Ed.

The delivery man, who was carrying the boxes, commenced to digging him out of the mess. "Gee, kid! I'm sorry!" he apologized. "I couldn't see you over the boxes, you're so short."

Edward exploded, "WHAT?!? WHO'RE YOU CALLING A BEAN-SPROUT-HALF-PINT-MIDGET?!?"

He shook the poor man by the shirt collar, a look of ultimate rage plastered on his face. "Game's up, Fullmetal," Roy observed, leaning against his desk in a triumphant manner.

"What? But you didn't--" Ed started, but was cut off.

"Ah, ah, ah!" Roy shook a finger. "I never said it had to be _me _you went off on. I only said if you get angry at being called 'short'."

The terrified delivery man crawled out of the room unnoticed. Edward sank to the floor. "I can't believe this!" he cursed himself. "What the hell!"

Roy walked over and crouched next to the teen, placing a not so reassuring hand on his shoulder. "I expect you to be at my house in the morning, Ed. Tell Al you'll be with me on a 'special' assignment for the week."

He slid his hand down the length of Ed's arm before rising to his feet. Opening the door, he turned and said, "If you have thoughts of backing out, Edward, don't forget...I know you're secret."

He left, leaving Edward cursing and swearing. "Stupid Bastard!"

End, Ch. 1

A/N: Whew! Well, here is chapter one. Hope everyone likes this fic so far. Please leave a review, it will be much appreciated. Chapter Two is already brewing in my head, so if you want it to be continued, reviews are required. Boost mah motivation! Woo!

Thanks for reading!


	2. Day 1: Laundry Disasters

A/N: Thank you, to everyone who left me reviews and to everyone who subscribed to this story and to me. I appreciate it more than you know.

Disclaimer: I still do not own Fullmetal Alchemist. v.v

High Stakes

Chapter 2

Day One

Edward woke up in an unfamiliar room. Or at least, he thought it was unfamiliar. Sitting up and rubbing his eyes, the alchemist tried to remember how he had gotten to be there, wherever "there" was. As he scanned through his thoughts, he was disturbed by a slight pulling on his nightshirt. As he looked back, he recoiled with horror as the memories of the lost bet entered his mind.

Last night, he had lost the wager, and after calling Al to tell him he would be gone for a week, he had gone with Roy to his apartment. He vaguely remembered lying down on the bed, and he certainly couldn't remember the colonel laying beside him. But why wouldn't he? It was his bed after all. Besides that, the evidence was clinging to his shirt.

Ed's state of panic made Roy stir. The dark haired man released Ed's shirt and sat up, yawning. Looking over, he saw the now blushing Edward scoot to the edge of the queen sized bed. "Morning, Edward," Roy purred.

For some reason, Ed didn't like the tone that Roy was taking. "Why are we in the same bed?" he spouted. "You didn't...do anything to me in my sleep did you?"

Roy chuckled. Moving closer to Ed, he whispered in a sultry tone, "Why? Didn't you feel it? You were screaming soooo loud."

As Roy moved closer, Edward moved away, eventually running out of room, resulting in gravity taking charge. Ed tumbled off the bed, and onto his back with his legs in the air. He shot up as fast as he could, and yelled, "What the hell! You touched me?!?"

Roy smirked, "No, but by the blush on your face, I can tell you wouldn't have minded. Now, go get me my coffee."

Ed opened his mouth to object, but he was cut off by Roy, "Oh yea, I like my coffee black."

The blond bottled his anger, and went to the kitchen to start the coffee. As he put the kettle on the stove, he began to think about what Roy had said. Would he really mind that much if he touched him...there? He shook his head furiously as if to shake the redness form his cheeks. He definitely didn't feel that way about a perverted, selfish, power hungry colonel.

As he waited for the water to boil, Roy came into the room, in full uniform, and took a pencil and some paper from a drawer in the cabinet. Ed saw him scribble down some things out of the corner of his eye, but was distracted from it when the kettle whistled. He made the coffee as he was told, and turned to give it to Roy just as he had finished writing. "This is a list of things I want you to do while I'm gone," he said, taking the coffee and trading it with the paper. "I'll be back this evening, and I expect everything on the list to be completed.

Roy patted Ed on the head with his free hand and walked out the door with his coffee. Ed stuck his tongue out as the door closed, then glanced over the note.

"Ed,

I have a pile of clothes in my room that need washing and drying. The laundry room is down the hall. I want every room in the apartment dusted and swept. Also, my room needs straightening. Oh! And I feel like eating in tonight. Anything is good. Surprise me. I want everything done by the time I get back this evening, or you'll be punished."

At the very bottom of the note was a smiley face with devil horns. Ed clenched the paper in his fist and scowled. He definitely didn't have any feelings for that sadistic son of a bitch!

クフフ。

After eating a self made breakfast, Edward looked over the list once more, and decided that he should tackle the laundry first so that he could dust and sweep in between washing, drying, and folding. He entered Roy's bedroom and looked around. There weren't and discarded clothes anywhere. Ed looked in the dresser, but the clothing in it were all clean. Then he saw a closet at the far end of the room. "That lazy bum," Ed thought to himself. "He probably threw them all in there."

He put his hand on the doorknob and paused...should he really be standing directly in front of this door when he opens it? Ed imagined a tsunami of dirty laundry baptizing him in it's disgusting filth. The notion made him shudder. To avoid such a disaster, Ed stepped to the side of the door, and yanked it open!

He clenched his eyes shut and waited for the sound of destruction to ensue...but there was nothing. Curiosity got the better of him, and he peaked around the door he used as a shield. Ed was shocked beyond belief. Roy had packed so many dirty clothes into the closet that they had lodged themselves in tightly enough that they became their own support. Standing back, as if to admire this symbol of procrastination, he noticed a pink sleeve hanging out of the pile.

Without thinking, Ed grabbed it and gently pulled at it. This simple action was his doom, for when he pulled that one sleeve, the entire contents of the closet tumbled forth, and buried him. Ed screamed and kicked, trying his best to break the surface of his fabric based grave. For a moment, he considered transmuting his automail into a blade and slicing his way out, but he remembered the punishment in store for him if he screwed anything up. Besides, he hadn't any room to clap his hands.

Finally, all his struggling paid off, and Ed emerged, breathlessly, from the clothing. This was going to be a long day for him. He just knew it.

クフフ。

After an hour of sorting them into piles, Ed was ready to put the clothes on to wash. He had it all sorted out. First, he would wash the darks, and when they finished he would switch them out with the lights and dry them. In between cycles, he would do other things on the list, and he'd be done by lunch. Or so he thought.

Ed had just finished washing the darks, and began loading the lights into the washing machine. Unseen to him, the pink shirt that had caused his accident with the avalanche of clothes had slipped in with the load. He turned on the machine and walked away to clean Roy's room, completely oblivious to what he had done.

While finishing up making Roy's bed, Ed heard the buzzer go off in the laundry room, indicating that the spin cycle on the washer had just been executed. He sprinted to the laundry room and opened the lid to the machine, and pulled out one of the white shirts he had put in...only it wasn't so white anymore.

"What the hell?" Ed mumbled, holding a damp, off pink shirt in his hands.

He pulled out the rest of the clothes and put them in a basket. The white shirts and underwear that he had loaded into the washer were no longer white. They were all light pink...all except one darker pink shirt. Ed mentally slapped himself. He couldn't believe how stupid he was. How was he supposed to explain this to Roy?

クフフ。

When Roy returned from work that evening, Ed was waiting for him at the door. "Hi!" he said with a smile. "How was work?"

Roy eyed the shorter male suspiciously. "It was okay," he responded. "I had a lot of paper work to do..."

Ed nodded and took Roy's coat with a wide smile. "Really? That's too bad. They really overwork you, you know that? Hey! How about a back massage?" Ed offered, tying his words together quickly.

Roy was sensing something was definitely out of place. Ed would never ask how his day was. Neither would he offer to do anything for him... "Edward," he started.

"Yea?" Ed smiled nervously, and put Roy's coat on the coat rack.

"What are you hiding?"

"I'm not hiding anything! Are you hungry? I made dinner, just like you asked."

"Ed..."

"I cooked spaghetti, baked potatoes, and garlic bre-"

"Edward!"

Ed turned around and answered with a crack in his voice, "Y-yes, Roy?"

"I'm going to ask you one more time..." Roy exhaled, and placed a firm hand on the younger alchemist's shoulder. "What are you hiding from me?"

Ed looked down and mumbled something inaudible.

"What?" Roy asked.

"I...accidentally ruined your white clothes..." he said again, clearly this time.

Roy released Ed's shoulder and lifted his chin with his finger. "Where are they?"

Ed looked in the direction of the utility closet, and Roy followed the gaze. He opened the door to see a pile of light pink clothes sitting in a basket in the floor of the small space. Roy's eye twitched slightly, and he turned back to the embarrassed Edward. "How the hell do you mess up something as simple as laundry?" he seethed.

Ed clenched his fists together and made faces at the floor. "It wasn't my fault!" he retorted. "Why the hell do you have a pink shirt anyway?"

Roy picked the basket up and walked it over to the garbage can, where he proceeded to dump them into said can. "Ed," he turned his head to face him. "Do you remember in that note when I mentioned the that if you didn't comply with everything I asked you to do that you would be punished?"

Edward gulped. He remembered alright. But he didn't think that he was actually going to do something to merit such measures. He hated thinking of what Roy was going to do to him. "You'll be serving your punishment tomorrow," Roy continued. "And I know just what to do to make you squirm."

At this, Ed was wishing he could jump out the window. And there he was thinking, again, that the next day was going to be the worst day of his life.

End, Chapter Two

A/N: I am extremely sorry about the delay. A lot of things have happened this week. I saw my sister for the first time in eight years and discovered I had two nieces. Happy to know we're in touch now, so everything is good. But now that the excitement has passed I will be able to get back to writing regularly. Thanks for reading this far. Please keep an eye out for the next chapter, because it is already underway. Don't forget to review! : )


	3. Day 2: Dignity Denied!

A/N: Thank you, everyone who reviewed the last chapter, and to those who recently subscribed to the story and to me! I love you all. Otherwise I wouldn't put myself through the discomfort of having people expect something from me. Ookay! Let's get this "drag" show on the road.

Disclaimer: I still don't own Fullmetal Alchemist or its characters. -weep-

High Stakes

Chapter 3

Day 2

"Ow!" Edward gasped. "S-stop it! It hurts!"

Roy replied in a soothing voice, "Relax, and this will go a lot more smoothly."

Ed groaned with impatience, and let out a pained pant. "Almost there..." Roy said.

"I...I can't breathe!" Ed cringed, and his body tensed. "Stop pulling so much!"

"But if I don't pull it tight enough, how are you going to serve your punishment?" the Flame Alchemist tied off the final ribbon and released Edward, who sighed with relief.

Roy stepped back and looked the younger male up and down. He had decided that Edward was to serve his punishment in a French Maid's uniform, something similar to what Ed was going to have him do if he had lost the bet. He had just finished tying off the ribbons to the back of the outfit, and Roy was very pleased with the results of his devious and perverted imagination.

"Tell me again," Ed began. "Why do I have to wear a maid's outfit?"

Roy smirked. "Irony, Edward. Something you should learn to accept."

"Uh...huh..." the blond tried to lengthen the short skirt. "And why do you conveniently have this in your apartment?"

"There are some things you are better off not knowing until you're older," the general laughed mockingly.

"Bullshit," Ed thought to himself.

He couldn't help but imagine Roy bringing home some cheap tart and making her dress up in the very outfit he was being made to wear. The idea, for some reason, made his blood boil. "How is this punishment?" he inquired. "I mean, you'll be at work. I could just change out of this when you leave!"

Roy idly twirled a frill from Ed's apron in his fingers and replied, "Oh, but no. I'm off the rest of this week!"

Ed blushed. It could have been from the fact that he was standing in front of Roy Mustang in a French Maid's uniform. It could have been because Roy was leaning in so close to him. Either way, Ed didn't like it. But there was nothing he could do. He was trapped in a situation that he couldn't get out of.

**クフフ。**

Ed went about the apartment dusting and cleaning, struggling to walk in the shoes he was being forced to wear with the outfit. They were made for a woman, therefore they were less roomy than the boots he normally wore. Every few steps or so, he would stumble and catch himself. Whenever he entered the living room, where Roy was seated in a recliner reading, Ed never failed to stumble just as he passed him. "Nice underwear, Fullmetal," Roy commented, adding a flirtatious whistle.

A blush rose to Ed's face, and he stomped off into the opposite direction. "Grr!" he mumbled, when he was out of earshot. "That man seriously frosts my cookies!"

He avoided the living room as much as possible, but almost the whole day after starting to clean, he was running out of places to idly polish. Ed heaved a heavy sigh. He really didn't want to clean the living room. He just knew that Roy was going to start in harassing him as soon as he began dusting. As he cleaned, Ed kept his ears alert for any sarcastic remarks.

Shockingly, after fifteen minutes of dusting and polishing mantels, nothing was heard from the older man. Curious, Edward walked over to check on him. The colonel was leaned back in his recliner with his hands secured on his chest holding the book in front of his face. Ed moved in closer and peeked over the book only to find that Roy had fallen asleep. He smiled a bit, seeing how docile the sarcastic colonel was while he was asleep. Gently, Edward took the book out of his hands and laid it onto the coffee table.

Just before he walked away, he noticed a cobweb in the high corner of the room, right behind the recliner. This made Ed twitch. If he left it there, Roy would notice and he would get in trouble...but if he woke him up to get to it, he would also be in trouble. What could he do? He was damned if he did, and damned if he didn't...unless...

With a determined look on his face, Edward grabbed his feather duster, and proceeded to climb over Roy to get to the cobweb. His body hovered just above Roy's, in a straddling position. With his left hand, he reached out to the web with the duster, falling short by only a few inches. Getting frustrated, the young alchemist shifted his body forward a bit more. The sudden movement made Roy stir a bit, and Ed froze.

A few moments passed with no further disruption, and he sighed. Reaching forward once more, he finally was able to get it. As Ed began to dismount the chair, Roy's arms suddenly wrapped themselves around his waist, pulling him down on top of him. The duster fell from him hand, and Ed attempted to escape out of instinct, but noticed that Roy was not even awake.

He stopped struggling and went limp. Ed knew now that he was in a huge bind. His only hope would be that Roy would let him go before he woke up and discovered the position they were in. Roy snuggled his mouth into the crook of Edward's neck, causing the blond to shiver. "I hope he's dreaming and not doing this for real!" he silently wished.

The sleeping Roy mumbled something softly. Ed's ears perked, and an evil grin surfaced on his face. Roy was a sleep talker? This could be the perfect opportunity to get some dirt on him and get out of the bet. "What was that?" he said softly, encouraging Roy to continue.

"You're...just too cute..." he mumbled again.

"Who is?" Ed asked, with false sweetness.

"...you wouldn't...like the answer..." Roy refused.

Ed frowned, "Why not?"

The grip that Roy had around Edward's waist got tighter. "Because it's you, dummy."

Ed looked over, noticing that the colonel had been awake the whole time. He had a big grin on his face, and a suspicious look in his eyes. "You..." Edward stammered. "You were awake?"

"Heheh. Only for a few moments," Roy answered, moving in to nuzzle the younger alchemists cheek.

Ed struggled again, trying his hardest to escape the clutches of the perverted colonel. "You had this planned the whole damn time! Didn't you!?!"

Roy grabbed both of Ed's wrists and restrained them above his head. "I think I've told you this before, Edward," he began, Ed toward him. "I don't have the world on strings. But if things happen to go in my favor, I'm not complaining."

His free hand began to wander up Edward's thigh, sending tingling sensations through the high stockings he was wearing. "S-stop it!" Ed protested.

Roy ignored Ed's demand, and his hand continued to slide up until he had concealed it beneath the frills of the skirt. "You were the one who was curious," he replied. "I'm just answering those little questions floating around in your head."

Edward was shivering. He didn't know if he hated this feeling, or liked it. He felt his mind spinning in confusion. He didn't like Roy Mustang, but in a way he didn't understand, he did. It was all to much to think about while Roy was trying to do this. It had to stop! He brought his knee up and kicked Roy in the side, causing him to release his hold of him. Ed scrambled to the other side of the room and leaned against the wall, panting.

Gripping at his side, where he was kicked, Roy groaned, "Did you really not like it that much?"

Ed looked away, his face a dark shade of red. "I...I don't know," he answered. "Please...let me change out of this outfit..."

Normally, Roy would refuse, considering he had just been assaulted by the boys knee. But he noticed a desperate look in Ed's eyes, and he knew he had struck a nerve. Roy sighed, "Yea...go ahead."

He watched him run off into the other room, and mentally kicked himself. He didn't mean to overdo it...but apparently, Edward Elric was a lot more sensitive than he let on. Roy got up after a few moments, and went to the bedroom where Ed was changing. He opened the door silently, and saw that Ed had slid his pants on under the skirt, but was having trouble getting the ribbons on the back of the Maid's uniform untied. "You need some help?" Roy asked quietly.

Ed shot an angry look at him, but then looked away and nodded, "Yea."

Roy came in and untied the ribbons to the back of the outfit. "Hey," he said. "I'm sorry about that...earlier. I overdid it."

"Yea, well," Ed slid the outfit off, and turned to face Roy. "You did go into overkill mode...but I think, maybe I might like...you..."

His words trailed off, and he looked off to the left for a moment. Roy smiled sincerely and hugged the shirtless Edward to him. "I'm glad you think so," he said.

Ed hugged back shortly, then pushed the taler man away. "But, I have a request," he said, seriously.

Roy sat down on the bed and nodded. "Okay."

"No more making me wear those frilly death traps!" Ed yelled, pointing an accusing finger at the dress on the floor.

Roy laughed, and smiled. "Okay. No more dresses."

Ed grinned, and grabbed his shirt. "Good. So, you think we're even now?"

"Not a chance," Roy smirked. "You still have to spend the week with me and do what I say."

"Crap!" Ed frowned.

"But," the colonel added. "It will be a little more bearable."

The two looked at each other and exchanged smiles. Edward was still confused on the inside, but the rest of the week would definitely prove to elicit an answer for him. And who knew? Perhaps he could discover that he more than just 'liked' Roy. Maybe he would discover that he actually harbored deep feelings...

"So," Roy grinned. "What's for dinner, short-stuff?"

Feelings as deep as a puddle...

A/N: Agh! I finally broke my writers block. Okay, so I didn't think this chapter was that great. But i'll leave that up to you. I am a little nervous about writing the first ACTUAL molesting scene...when I actually feel comfortable enough to write it. =.=; Be prepared. I'm a virgin at writing lemon scenes. Please, review! 3


	4. Day 3: Rainy Day Shoppers

A/N: Thank you, everyone who left reviews to chapter three and to everyone who has put this in their favorites and their alerts. I hope that you all like this chapter better than the last. Oh, and sorry about the pun I threw into the Author Notes at the start of the last chapter. Yea. I am bad with jokes. By the way, the more reviews I get, the happier I am. The happier I am, the more I write. So...if you want a new chapter, _**BE MY RAY OF SUNSHINE ON A CLOUDY DAY!**_ XD

But seriously, constructive criticism helps. If you spot a major mistake that I have overlooked, or would like to request a change of pace, review and let me know how you _feel_ about it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or its characters. Just the scenario. ^-^;

High Stakes

Chapter 4

Day 3

Edward Elric awoke to the sound of rain tapping against the window of Roy's bedroom. His golden eyes gazed out into the mass of gray clouds on the other side of the glass and heaved a sigh. He didn't mind rainy days all that much, but they made the morning a little colder. Rolling over, he snuggled close to the nearest heat source available. In this case, Roy. Closing his eyes tightly, Ed tried to go back to sleep, only to be interrupted by the sound of Roy's voice breaking the silence.

"Wake up, Edward" he said, rubbing his eyes. "You have to face the day, whether you want to or not."

Groaning, Ed buried his face in the older man's shirt and sighed. "It's too cold," he complained.

Roy smiled and pried the young alchemist away from the warmth of his chest. "That may be, but you have some shopping to help me with."

Edward shot up in confusion. "Shopping? What the hell do you mean by that?" he inquired.

Roy stretched, slid out of bed, and motioned for Ed to follow him into the kitchen. The two of them entered the small space, where Roy suddenly flung the cabinets open. They were practically bare, save for a box of noodles and a packet of sauce.

"Grocery shopping," Roy clarified.

Edward's expression fell to that of defiance. "It's raining outside," he said. "And quite frankly, I don't like being cold and wet!"

"Did I ask you if you liked it?" the colonel retorted. "If you want to eat something other than expired pasta, then we're going shopping."

Edward knew he had lost the argument. "Fine," he huffed. "Let me take a quick shower."

Roy smiled as he started up his coffee maker. "He really is adorable in a mad mood," he thought.

**クフフ。**

After Edward and Roy had both showered, the two left the apartment to shop for groceries. Unfortunately, Roy only owned one umbrella. Ed found himself walking closer to Roy than he ever wanted to in public. Making matters worse, the colonel had put his arm around Ed's shoulders to keep him out of the rain. What was he thinking? Didn't he think that this would make for a strange scene if someone from the military were to witness it? Then again, this was Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist. Anyone who dared to bring it up would be bacon before they got five words out of their mouth. But in this weather? It was highly unlikely that he would be burning people today.

They reached the market after a damp ten minute wade through puddles and miniature ponds, and Roy shook the rain from the umbrella before entering the store. Pulling a list from his pocket, he tore in in half where it had been folded. "Here," Roy gave Ed the bottom half. "You look for these items and meet me in the frozen foods."

Irritably, Ed snatched the paper from him and stomped away in search of the produce in the list. Grabbing a stray shopping cart, he wheeled it in the direction of the canned foods. Directly at the end of the aisle, was a pyramid made entirely of cans.

"Tch," the teen scoffed. "Why do they even stack things like that? It's dangerous!"

He proceeded in putting various canned goods into his cart. Unseen by Edward, a small child had approached the pyramid. In an effort to help his mother, the boy pulled a can from the bottom of the stack, and walked away, oblivious to the reaction he had started. The pyramid gave an ominous wobble, and with a metallic clunk the cans stampeded down the aisle Ed was on.

Hearing the loud noise, Ed turned to look. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped in shock. Dropping the can he had in his hand, he grabbed the cart and ran for his life, pushing it in front of him. However, he was not fast enough, and the wave of canned goods buried him alive. "Clean up, on aisle 5," a stuffy voice rang over the intercom. "Clean up, on aisle 5..."

Ed surfaced from the pile of cans and grunted. "Grr! I'm getting sick and tired of this happening to me!"

With disgust, he found that the shopping cart had escaped harm completely. "Lucky hunk of junk," Ed cursed the object, and swiveled it to the bread aisle.

As Ed looked through the loafs of bread, he scowled as he noticed that Roy had written down a specific brand. A brand that the stockers had placed on the top shelf. Out of habit, Edward clapped his hands to transmute a step ladder from the floor, but seeing as he was in a crowded supermarket, the last thing he wanted to do was draw attention to his height deficiency.

In an attempt to reach the bread, Ed jumped up. Barely able to touch it, the alchemist growled in frustration. He tried once again, and failed. Taking in a deep breath, Edward jumped up one more time and felt a pair of strong arms wrap around his waist, lifting him up. As he grabbed the pack of bread, the confused Edward turned his head and saw that Roy was the mystery person aiding him in his challenge.

A blush rose to his cheeks, and Edward pouted. "I could have gotten it myself," he complained.

Putting the boy back on his feet, Roy smiled and replied, "Sure you could, Fullmetal."

Placing the bread in the cart, Edward turned to face the colonel with a cross look. "So, you've resorted to stalking me in the market now?" he said, his voice dripping with annoyance.

With his trademark smirk, Roy answered, "I just figured you would need help reaching something. Turns out I was right."

Edward's face turned tomato red, and the urge to run Roy down with the shopping cart made itself known.

**クフフ。**

When everything was ran through the check out line, the two state alchemists put everything in one of the cardboard boxes placed at the entrance of the store and huddled beneath the umbrella to avoid the rain. Ed was carrying the box, which made it hard for him to stay dry beneath the limited radius of the object. "Hey, scoot over!" he exclaimed. "I'm getting wet!"

"This is as much room as I can give you, Ed," Roy replied. "And concentrate on where you're walking. There are a lot of dips and holes in this sidewalk."

"I can walk just fi-"

Before Edward could finish his sentence, his foot sank into a deep puddle, ultimately causing him to face-plant the pavement. With the box still in hand, it had miraculously avoided getting wet from the puddle. With a growl, the now soaked Fullmetal Alchemist rose to his feet. "I hate it when he's right," he thought, trying to ignore Roy's laughing.

"Hahaha! So much for that shower you took earlier!" laughed the older man.

Ed shook some of the water from his braid and held the box under the umbrella that Roy was holding. There really wasn't a point in him walking beneath it, seeing as he was already sopping wet.

**クフフ。**

Upon arriving at Roy's apartment, Ed wrung his clothes dry as best he could on the doorstep before stepping inside. "Brr!" he shivered. "I told you I don't like being wet and cold!"

Roy set the box on the kitchen counter, and turned to face Ed. "Then you should get out of those wet clothes."

"You're right," Ed continued, oblivious to the undertone in the colonel's voice. "I hate taking off wet clothes, though. It's so difficult!"

A wicked grin graced Roy's features, and he walked toward the blond, backing him into a corner like a cat with a mouse. "Then," he began, raising a hand to Ed's shirt collar. "you should let me help you with that."

Edward blushed deeply, and thoughts of escape tugged at his mind. But his body wouldn't listen to what his brain was telling them. As Roy's fingers slowly unbuttoned his shirt, the only responses the young man could muster were shivers and the constant blush. Roy leaned in close to Edward's face and smiled. "You seem so tense, Edward," he said, his voice teasingly smooth. "Why would that be?"

Ed turned his face away, the blush deepening. "D-don't ask questions you already know the answer to," he managed.

"Oh, but you know I would rather hear you say it," Roy's smirk grew.

Edward's head whirled back to face him. "You ass-"

Taking advantage of his open mouth, Roy leaned in and kissed Edward on the lips. For a moment, Ed was still. His mind spun with confusion. What exactly was happening? Sure he told Roy that he thought he liked him the night before. But the keyword was _thought._ After a few seconds, however, the part of his mind that controlled his logical thought process blew a fuse somewhere and ceased function. At this point, instinct kicked in.

Edward closed his eyes and returned the kiss that was initiated, he lifted his arms and wrapped them around the colonel's neck. Taking this as a sign to continue, Roy ran his tongue along his bottom lip. Gripping the back of Roy's shirt, Edward parted his lips, granting him access. While his tongue dueled with Ed's in a fight for dominance, Roy's free hand skimmed across his now exposed stomach, up to his chest. The feather light touches elicited shivers from him, and made him feel a warmth rising inside. The feeling made Edward feel vulnerable. Strangely enough, the vulnerability didn't bother him much.

Breaking away from each other for air, Edward and Roy stared at one another momentarily. As Roy leaned in to lock lips with him again, Edward turned his head and scrunched his nose. "What's wrong?" asked Roy.

A second later, the colonel was answered with a loud, "WACHOO!"

Roy released Edward, and backed away reluctantly. "Sorry," he said. "For a moment, I forgot that you were soaked."

That, of course, was a lie. He hadn't for a moment forgotten how wet the younger alchemist was. The proof was in the fact that the thought of how sexy Edward looked while drenched with water never left his mind for a minute. Embarrassed and cold, Ed quickly turned away. "I need another shower," he stated.

Roy smiled and watched the other disappear into the bathroom. Leaning against the wall, he sighed, "Damn. So close, too."

**End, Ch. 4**

A/N: Okay! Thought I'd leave it as a bit of a cliff hanger for now. Does anyone have any clue how hard it is to try and derive inspiration from music when half the songs on your Zune are either of the Metal genre or old-school AFI? You either come up with depressing drabbles, or emotionally confused angsty stuff. Thus, why I am making Edward so inwardly conflicted. Heh! Thought I would get some inspiration by buying Fullmetal Alchemist: Duel Sympathy, for the DS, but I only succeeded in getting frustrated with Roy for not being fast enough to dodge the huge three headed purple chimeras! DAMN YOU, MUSTANG! DX Getting through without any continues as him is HARD! By the way, thanks for being patient, all those who have been waiting. Hopefully, the next chapter won't take too long. -cough- review -cough- Kidding, just do what you like. I love you all! 3


	5. Author's Apology

I know that it's really late to be apologizing for not updating in so long, but I would like everyone to know that I haven't given up on this story. ^-^; I've found it a little hard to write on it, since FMA has fallen out of interest for me. I have only just started picking up where I'd left off on the next chapter, and I will post it as soon as I can derive some inspiration for it. Please forgive me for not putting up a not sooner. I appreciate all those who have favorited and reviewed this story. I will finish it, no matter what, though I cannot guarantee that it will be done quickly. Once again, I am really sorry for not updating. The next chapter will be coming soon. ~M.G.


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